Contestants Race to Map DNA of 100 Centenarians

ENLARGE

Dennis Morris, 105 years old, of Marietta, Ohio, is part of a DNA study of 100 centenarians world-wide that aims to identify genes that increase resistance to age-related illnesses, such as Alzheimer's and heart disease.
Andrew Spear for The Wall Street Journal

By

Clare Ansberry

Sept. 21, 2012 7:08 p.m. ET

MARIETTA, Ohio—In honor of National Centenarian Day on Saturday, 105-year-old Dennis Morris will likely email his pen pal, Henry Wasserman, 100, and wish him well.

The two men met online after they volunteered to submit their DNA to scientists competing in a $10 million challenge to quickly, cheaply and accurately sequence the genomes of 100 centenarians around the world.

So far, 80 of the 100 centenarians have submitted their DNA, including Besse Cooper, 116, a retired school teacher in Georgia who is the world's oldest person, according to Guinness World Records. Among other countries represented by participants are Italy, Germany and Australia.

After prospective participants are nominated and screened, they donate a blood sample, which is sent to the Coriell Research Institute in New Jersey.

Once the DNA is collected and stored, scientific teams—there currently are two but sponsors hope to eventually have five groups competing—will have 30 days to sequence the whole genome of 100 centenarians for $1,000 or less per genome, with an accuracy greater than 99%. The competition is expected to be completed in October 2013 with the data then available to researchers around the world.

Researchers aren't necessarily interested in trying to extend the limits of mortality, which would have enormous social and economic consequences, including exploding health-care costs.

"The goal, in my mind, is not to increase life span, but how to increase health span," says Thomas Perls, director of a Boston University-based study of centenarians in New England.

Dr. Perls, who is assisting in identifying the centenarians for the competition, said this would be the first effort to sequence the genomes of a significant number of centenarians. Healthy centenarians are believed to have "protective genes," which markedly increase their resistance to age-related diseases like Alzheimer's and heart disease. Studying those protective markers could help lead to developments of drugs that could potentially protect against the disease. He doesn't expect that there will be a huge increase in the number of centenarians, but it could help more people be healthier in their 80s.

The number of centenarians world-wide, now about a half million, has been increasing by about 7% a year. About 53,300 of them live in the U.S., according to the 2010 Census.

Most centenarians themselves are stumped by their longevity. "Honey I don't know myself how I do it," says Bernice Madigan, 113, a retired government secretary in Massachusetts, who donated her DNA in hopes that it would unlock clues to her streak. Ms. Madigan qualifies as a supercentenarian, someone who is 110 and older, a rare group estimated to be one of every five million people.

Mr. Morris, who lives in a retirement community in this riverfront town, is a semi-supercentenarian, meaning he is only 105. A former math teacher with wavy white hair and an interest in science and the universe, Mr. Morris spends much of his time on the computer doing research and reading books on particle physics on his Kindle.

Every Sunday night, he emails a new weekly letter to family and friends, a practice he started the Sunday after his wife died in 2004. His 456th letter went out Sunday.

When talking with the X Prize organizers, he asked if they knew anyone his age that he could talk or write to since he has outlived his peers. They checked around and found 100-year-old blogger Henry Wasserman in Southern California. "Sure, give the youngster my email," Mr. Morris replied.

The two men exchange correspondence. "I'm a simple man who likes the basic good things in life: honesty, response and being a good citizen," as well as good desserts, wrote Mr. Wasserman. "I was born in a small coal mining town, the son of a coal miner," wrote Mr. Morris. They mentioned limitations—hearing loss, stroke, minor heart problems—and shared losses of spouses.

For the most part, they discuss their good fortune, something that aging experts say is common among the very old. Mr. Morris drove until he was 98, and golfed until this summer, when he gave it up. "I couldn't swing without falling," he says. Up until a month ago, he used only a cane but has since resorted to a walker because his legs are much weaker. His daughter, Nancy, is a big help.

Mr. Wasserman, who is legally blind, is living with friends, Lisa and Bob Blackstock, a couple who took him in after his wife died and he suffered a mild stroke. He now has his own blog, "Henry at 100 & Beyond," describing his search for the best doughnuts and chocolate shops, and business cards.

"The older I get, the more interesting situations I find myself in," Mr. Wasserman wrote to Mr. Morris. "I feel like I'm entering a new phase in my life."

They are intrigued by the DNA research. Neither thought they would live as long as they have. Mr. Wasserman figured 85 would be his limit.

"I think another shirt will do it," Mr. Morris has been saying each birthday for the last few decades. He expects to repeat the same line on Nov. 16 when he turns 106. "I do feel special."

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